Plate separator for self-leveling plate dispensing

ABSTRACT

A dispensing device for dispensing articles such as dishes, platters, saucers and the like includes a tube in which the articles to be dispensed are stacked in column form. A biasing spring urges the column in one longitudinal direction and a stop engages the longitudinal end or top of the column to establish the level of the top article to be dispensed. A bent rod is provided which includes at least a portion disposed at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the column whereby the top article is urged against the aforementioned portion of the bent rod to project the top article laterally to one side to faciliate dispensing.

United States Patent 1191 1111 3,900,133

Lisbin et a1. Aug. 19, 1975 1541 PLATE SEPARATOR FOR SELF-LEVELING3.161295 12/1964 Chesley .v 211/49 D PLATE DISPENSING 3,565,500 2/1971Shelley 312/71 3.767.082 10/1973 House 221/279 [75] Inventors: ArthurLisbin, Upper Saddle River;

Ianney Wayne Townshlp" Primary ExaminerRobert B. Reeves Passmc Countyboth 0t James Assistant E.\'aminerFrancis J. Bartuska Albanese,Brookylnv Attorney, Agent, or FirmFrank .1. Jordan [73] Assignee:Levelator Corporation, Paterson,

NJ [5 7] ABSTRACT [22] Filed: 25,1974 A dispensing device for dispensingarticles such as dishes, platters, saucers and the like includes a tubein 1 l PP Noi 454,280 which the articles to be dispensed are stacked incolumn form. A biasing spring urges the column in one 52 us. (:1221/280; 211/49 D longitudinal direetien and Step engages the longitu-51 Int. Cl. A47f 1 /06 dinal end or P the eelumn to establish the levelof [58] Field of Search H 221/279 280, 232, 31 l, the top article to bedispensed. A bent rod is provided 221/312 220/33 5 21 1/49 D whichincludes at least a portion disposed at an acute angle relative to thelongitudinal axis of the column [56] References Cited whereby the toparticle is urged against the aforementioned portion of the bent rod toproject the top arti- UNITED STATES PATENTS cle laterally to one side tofaciliate dispensing. 2,619253 11/1952 Fuchs 220/33 2,980,289 4/1961Pick 221/279 7 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures E a 5O 84 26 N j 24 I PLATESEPARATOR FOR SELF-LEVELING PLATE DISPENSING BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThis invention relates to a dispenser and more particularly to adispenser of the type in which the articles to be dispensed are biasedso as to place the top article in a position where it may be easilyreached. More particularly the invention relates to means forcontrolling the position of the top article of a column of articles tobe dispensed to facilitate dispensing of the top article.

Dispensers are frequently used in restaurants, service counters, servingstations and other locations for dispensing various types of articles,wares and the like such as dishes, platters, saucers, and the like. Itis desirable that such dispensers be arranged so that the article to bedispensed may be easily and readily reached by the user. Heretofore,dispensers have been known in which the articles are stacked, one uponthe other, in column form and whereby the stacked column is dis posedwithin an elongated tube. A spring is disposed at the bottom of the tubeand biases the articles in an up ward direction. The arrangement is suchthat the articles at the top of the stacked column are maintainedgenerally at a fixed position or fixed elevation in which the toparticle is readily accessible to the user. As the user removes the toparticle, the spring expands a little bit more and raises the stackedcolumn. Accordingly, as each top article is removed, the stacked columncontinues to rise to maintain the upper article in a generallypredetermined elevation where it is readily accessible to the user.

In our copending US. patent application Ser. No. 350,501 filed Apr. 12,1973, now US. Pat. No. 3,861,563, there is disclosed a dispenser whichis able to maintain the top article in the stacked column to bedispensed at a constant level, independently of the weight of thearticles being dispensed. The present invention relates to animprovement by providing that the top article is not only dispensed at aconstant level, but further, that the top article is projected in amanner to be disposed to one side of the stacked column where it may bereadily grasped to facilitate dispensing.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide animproved dispenser which disposes the top article on a column ofarticles to be dispensed to one side of the column where it may bereadily grasped to facilitate dispensing.

Another object of the present inventor is to provide a dispenser havinga operable means for determining the dispensing level of the top articleto be dispensed and in which the operable means is operable to projectthe top article laterally to one side.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a dispenserhaving an operable means which may be readily latched into an operatingposition and unlatched and swung to one side to provide access for filling the dispenser with the articles to be dispensed.

A further object of the present invention as to provide a dispenserwhich controls the position of the top article to be dispensed and whichis relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

Other features which are considered characteristic of the invention areset forth in the appended claims.

Although the invention is illustrated and described in relationship tospecific embodiments, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited tothe details shown, since various modifications and structural changesmay be made therein without department from the spirit of the inventionand within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A dispensing device comprises a container meanscontaining a column of articles to be dispensed. The container means hasan opening through which the articles are dispensed and biasing meansurge the column of articles in one longitudinal direction towards theopening. Operable means are associated with the opening and engage onelongitudinal end of the column. The opening in the container means issurrounded by a flange and the operable means includes at least a firstportion disposed at an acute angle relative to the general plane of theflange whereby the end article is urged against the aforementionedportion of the operable means and is projected laterally to one side tofacilitate dispensing of the end article.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a vertical section view of adispenser according to one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the dispenser shown in FIG. 1 but excluding thedishes.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the operable means at the top of thedispenser for facilitating dispensing of the top plate.

FIG. 4 is a partial side view looking along the line 4-4 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a partial side view looking along the line 55 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view of the pivotal support arrangementfor the operable means taken along the line 66 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view of the releasable and detachable endportion of the operable means taken along the line 7-7 in FIG. 2.

FIG. 8 is a partial elevational view of the operable means looking fromthe left hand side of FIG. 2.

FIG. 9 is a view similar to FIG. 8 but with the latching means removedfor the purposes of illustrating the disposition of the operable meansin the unlatched condition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE Referring to the drawings, andparticularly to FIG. 1, there is shown a dispensing tube 20 having acylindrical side wall 22 joined to a bottom 24 and having a flange 26about the periphery of the opened end of the tube. The dispensing tube20 may be mounted within an opening of a counter top or within anopening in a portable dispensing unit or similar location. Thedispensing tube 20 may be constructed of sheet metal such as stainlesssteel or other materials such as plastic or the like.

Disposed within the tube 20 is a biasing means in the form of a coilspring 28. The spring 28 is located in the tube 20 with the longitudinalaxis of the spring 28 generally aligned with the longitudinal axis ofthe tube 20. A disk element 30 is suitable secured to the upperlongitudinal end of the spring 28. The disk element 30 has securedthereto 65' a threaded member 32, a plate 34 having a skirt 36. Theplate 34 is adapted to receive the bottom article of a stacked column ofarticles to be dispensed. The lower, longitudinal end of the spring 28bears against a disk element 38 disposed at the bottom of the dispensingtube 20.

A flexible means in the form of a chain 40 is secured to thelongitudinal ends of the spring 28 or to the disks 30, 38, therebylimiting the longitudinal, maxium extension of the spring. Thus, in FIG.1, the spring 28 is shown in its maximum extended position as indicatedby the fact that the chain is pulled taut. Because the chain 40 isflexible the latter will not prevent the plate 34 from being displaceddownwardly against the bias of the spring 40.

Suitably mounted on the flange 22 of the tube is an operable means inthe form of a bent rod 42 which is disposed over the open top of thedispenser unit. One end of the bent rod 42 is pivotally secured ormounted on the dispenser tube 26 flange by the pivotally support lug 44while the other end of the bent rod 42 is adapted to be releasable andresiliently latched onto a latch element 46 mounted on the dispenserflange 26. With the aforesaid mounting arrangement, the operable meansor bent rod 42 may be readily released from the latch element 46 andpivoted about a generally vertical axis from an operable positiondisposed over the open top of the dispenser as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 toa position where the operable means 42 is located to one side of theopen top of the dispenser tube 20 to thereby facilitate and make itpossible to load the dishes into the dispenser tube 20.

Turning now to more of the details of construction, the bent rod 42 hasa generally V-shaped configuration in plan view as can be seen in FIG.2. Thus, the bent rod 22 includes a generally V-shaped portion made upof two rod sections 48, 50, a pair of converging connecting legs 52 and54, a pair of axially aligned connecting legs 56, 58, a pair of uprightlegs 60, 62, and a pair of flanges 64, 66 at the lower end of theupright portions 60, 62 respectively.

The flange 64 at the lower end of the upright portion 60 is pivotallymounted on the flange 26 of the dispenser tube 20. This pivotal mountedmounting is effected by the pivotal support lug 44 which has a lowerportion mating with the top of the dispenser tube flange 26 and which issecured to the dispenser tube flange 26 by a fastening element 68. Thesupport lug 44 has an overhanging portion which cooperates with theupper face of the dispenser tube flange 26 to define a channel as canbest be seen in FIG. 6. The flange 64 on the bent rod element 42 isdisposed within this channel. A threaded thumb screw 70 threadedlyengages an opening in the lug 44 and passes through an opening in thebent rod flange 64 to threadedly engage a nut 71 welded to the undersideof the flange 26. As shown in FIG. 6 washers 72, 73 or the like may beprovided within the channel. It will be seen that the fastening element68 secures the support lug 44 to the dispenser tube flange 26, that thethumb screw 70 provides a pivotal axis for the bent rod 42, and that thethumb screw 70 may be readily unthreaded to facilitate removal andcleaning of the bent rod 42.

The latch element 46 is suitably secured to the dispenser flange 26 by athreaded element 74. The latch element 46 has an overhanging portion anda downwardly projecting lip 76 to define a generally inverted U-shapedchannel 78 in which the flange 66 of the bent rod 42 is accommodatedwhen the latter is in latched position. The lower face of the lip 76 isspaced from the top of the dispenser flange 26 a distance greater thanthe thickness of the flange 66 of the bent rod 42 in order to provideaccess of the bent rod flange 66 into and out of its latching positionas will be further described.

In its latching position as shown in FIG. 7, the bent rod flange 66 isbiasingly engaged against the upper surface of the U-shaped channel 78in the latch element. Thus it will be seen that with the bent rod flange66 biased as aforesaid, as shown in FIG. 7, the lip 76 on the latchelement 46 precludes pivotal movement of the bent rod 42 away from itsoperable position (shown in FIGS. I and 2) unless the bent rod flange 66is depressed against the biasing force so that it can be lowered belowthe lip 76 on the latch element and pivoted or moved out beyond theaccess channel.

The biasing force for retaining the bent rod 42 in its latched positionshown in FIG. 7 is obtained from the bent rod 42 itself. Thus, bycomparing FIGS. 8 and 9 it will be seen that the bent rod 42 is arrangedand con- I struction so that in its normal and unbiased position, theflange 66 on the bent rod member is located a distance 80 above the topsurface of the dispenser flange 26. This aforementioned distance 80shown in FIG. 9 is greater than the distance 82 shown in FIG. 7. It willbe seen therefore that since the distance 80 is greater than thedistance 82, the bent rod flange 66 will be biased against the uppersurface of the channel 78 in the latch member 46 as shown in FIG. 7 whenthe bent rod 42 is in the latched position. Accordingly, in order tounlatch the bent rod 42 from its latched position, it is first necessaryto depress a portion (the lower portion as viewed in FIG. 2) of the bentrod 42 against the inherent bias in the bent rod 42 so that the bent rodflange 66 may be lowered below the level of the lip 76 of the latchmember 46 and thereafter swung outwardly or counterclockwise, as viewedin FIG. 2, about the pivot axis 70.

The bent rod 42 may be made of various materials. By way of example,stainless steel may be used. The bent rod 42 is arranged so ,.that whenthe bent rod flange 64 is secured to the support lug 44 as shown in FIG.6, the other bent rod flange 66 will be in the elevated position asshown in FIG. 9 when in the unlatched position. The arrangement andconstruction heretofore described may be obtained merely by bending andconstructing the bent rod 42 to the configuration shown in the drawings.By way of example, the bent rod flange 64 may be disposed at an acuteangle relative to the upright section 60 such that when the flang 64 isdisposed in a level disposition parallel to the dispenser tube flange26, the other bent rod flange 66 will be disposed in its elevatedposition shown in FIG. 9. Alternatively, the bend in the bent rod 42 toobtain the elevated position of the flange 66 shown in FIG. 9 may beincluded in or extend over various other sections of the bent rod 42.

With the arrangment as described above, it will be observed that it is asimple matter to grasp a portion (the lower portion as viewed in FIG. 2)of the bent rod 42 and pivot or swing it clockwise or counter clockwiseabout pivot pin 70. Thus, after the dispenser tube 20 has been filled,it is only necessary to hold the column of plates down with one hand andthen use the other hand to swing the bent rod 42 clockwise (as viewed inFIG. 2) from its unlatched and inoperable position to a position shownin FIG. 2 merely by swinging the bent rod 42 and depressing it to guideit into its latched position shown in FIG. 7. Once it is disposed in thelatched position, the bent rod 42 will remain secured in positionsuitable for operation.

The Vshaped portion of the bent rod element includes the two legs 48,50. It will be observed that the two inner leg portions 52, 54 aregenerally horizontally disposed while the two outer leg portions 48, 50extend at an angle relative to horizontal. The two outer leg portions48, 50 disposed at an angle are operable to engage the upper plate inthe dispenser and to project the upper plate to one side as shown inFIG. 1 to facilitate the dispensing operation. Thus, it will be seenthat the top plate will bear against the bent rod 42 as the spring 28biases the stacked column of plates in an upward direction. The platesare withdrawn from the dispenser merely by grasping the top plate andpulling it laterally (generally to the left as viewed in FIG. 2).

As the spring 28 biases the column of plates upwardly, the top plateengages the outer legs 48, 50, which are disposed at an acute anglerelative to horizontal as set forth above, so that the top plate is slidto one side by the horizontal component of force resulting from theurging of the top plate against the outer bent leg portions 48, 50 bythe spring 28. Thus, the spring 28 biases the top plate against the twoouter legs 48, 50 to engage the latter and since the two outer legs 48,50 are disposed at an acute angle relative to horizontal, the upwardbiasing force of the spring 28 is divided into a horizontal component offorce and a vertical component of force by the angulary disposed outerleg portions 48, 50. The horizontal component, of course, thereforeprojects the top plate to the left as viewed in FIG. 1. It will beobserved, particularly in FIG. 1, that when the top plate is projectedto the left, its outer projecting edge extends beyond the remainingplates and therefore the top plate may be readily grasped wherebydispensing is facilitated.

It will be further observed that in addition to the top plate, one ormore of the plates therebelow are also projected outwardly as the upperedges of such plates also engage the outer legs 48, 50 of the bent rod42. However, it will be observed that the top plate is projected morethan the other plates so that the edge of the top plate extends beyondthe edge of the next lower plate.

It will be seen from FIG. 1 that the outer edge of the top plate may bereadily grasped to withdraw the plate whereby after withdrawal, thespring 28 forces the column of plates upwardly so that the next plate insuccession is moved upwardly and simultaneously projected outwardly tothe position occupied by the former plate as the edge of the risingplate engages the outer leg portions 48, 50 of the bent rod 42.Accordingly, as each plate is removed from the dispensing unit, the topplate will always occupy the position shown in FIG. 1 whereby it may beeasily and readily grasped for dispensing.

It will be observed that the top plate is raised to a position whereinthe outer rim engages the horizontal sections 52 to 58 of the bent rod42 to serve as a stop to retain the column of plates within thedispensing tube 20. Thus as the top plate is removed and the next platerises to take its place, the edges of the plate ride up along the outerbent portions 48, 50 of the bent rod 42 to project the top plate to theleft as viewed in FIG. 1 until the rising plate engages the horizontalportions 52 to 58 of the bent rod 42 to prevent it from rising anyfurther.

It will be observed in FIG. 1 that the several upper plates areprogressively projected to the left with the top plate being projectedthe furtherest. Thus in travel ing to a position of final dispensing,the plates are progessively advanced upwardly and to the left during thelast several positions prior to dispensing. This arrangement facilitatesgradual positioning of the top plate until it reaches its final positionwhere it may be readily dispensed.

The outer leg portion 48, 50 of the bent rod 42 may be disposed atvarious angles depending on various conditions such as theconfiguration, size and weight of the plates being dispensed, the sizeof the dispensing unit, the extent of the biasing force of the springand various other factors. Thus, this angle may vary as desired asrequired depending on the aforementioned design and operationalconsiderations.

As pointed out hereinabove, the several upper plates are progressivelydisposed to project to one side. As may be desired, a retaining element84 disposed at an angle corresponding to the angle of the progressivelyprojecting plates may be located at the outer dispensing end of thedispensing unit. This retaining element 84 may comprise a rod or thelike disposed at an angle relative to the longitudinal axis of the tube22 as shown in FIG. 1. The angle of the retaining element 84 correspondsgenerally to the angle made by the edges of the plates at the top of thestack as caused by the outer legs 48, 50 of the bent rod 42. Theretaining element 84 extends to a position below the top plate andthereby insures to retain the lower plates within the dispensing unit.The retaining element 84 may be suitably secured to the dispensing tubeflange 26. Alternatively, several rods may be used as retaining rodelements. Also a curved plate may extend partially about the pheripheryof the dispensing tube flange 26 to serve as a retaining element. Inthis case the retaining element would consist of a portion of a surfacedefined by a cone.

The retaining element 84 would be used when desired but may not berequired at all times. For example, certain plates may have a lowcoefficient of friction so that drawing out of the top plate may tend topull out the plate below. However, with the retaining element 84 asdescribed hereinabove, such drawing of the lower plates would beprecluded.

From the above description, it will be seen that there has beendisclosed an operable means operable to determine the position of theuppermost article of an array of stacked articles to be dispensed andwherein the top article is disposed to one side to expose a portion ofits outer rim whereby it may be readily grasped to facilitatedispensing. Although the illustrated embodiments relate to dispensingplates, it will be understood that the principles of the presentinvention may be applied to dispensing other articles beside plates.

While the invention has been described by means of specific examples andin specific embodiments, it is not intended to be limited thereto, forobvious modifications will occur to those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A dispensing device comprising a container means containing a columnof articles to be dispensed, said container means having an openingthrough which said articles are dispensed, biasing means urging saidcolumn in one longitudinal direction towards said opening, operablemeans associated with said opening and engaging one longitudinal end ofsaid column, said operable means including a pair of upright portionseach joined to a separate stop flange, said container means having acontainer flange about said opening, latch means detachably latching oneof said stop flanges to said container flange, said latch meansincluding a latch lug secured to said container flange, said latch lughaving an overhanging portion spaced from said container flange, a lipprojecting downwardly from said overhanging portion to thereby define aninverted, generally U-shaped channel in said latch lug, said one stopflange being accomodated in said channel in latching position, saidoperable means also including a first portion disposed at an acute anglerelative to the longitudinal axis of said column and cooperable withsaid biasing means to partially project said end article laterally toone side of said column to facilitate dispensing of said end article.

2. A dispensing device according to claim 1 wherein said lip is spacedfrom said container means flange to define an access passage for saidone stop flange.

3. A dispensing device according to claim 1 wherein said operable meansincludes means for biasing said one stop flange in said latched positionin said channel.

4. A dispensing device according to claim 3 wherein said operable meansis constructed and arranged to effeet a biasing action of said stopflange against a surface of said channel when said one stop flange is insaid latched position.

5. A dispensing device comprising a container means containing avertical column of articles to be dispensed, said container means havingan opening through which said articles are dispensed, biasing meansurging said column in one longitudinal direction towards said opening,operable means associated with said opening and engaging onelongitudinal end of said column, said operable means including a firstV-shaped portion disposed at an acute angle relative to the longitudinalaxis of said column and cooperable with said biasing means to partiallyproject said end article laterally to one side of said column tofacilitate dispensing of said end article, said operable means includinga second portion disposed generally perpendicular to the longitudinalaxis of said column, said second portion having converging legs joinedto respective legs of said V-shaped configuration of said first portion,said operable means further including a pair of upright portions eachjoined to a separate stop flange, said opening in said container meansbeing surrounded by a flange, mounting means pivotally mounting one ofsaid stop flanges to said container means flange, said mounting meansincludes a pivotal support lug, fastening means securing said supportlug to said container means flange, pin means pivotally mounting saidone stop flange between a part of said support lug and said containermeans flange, and latch means detachably latching the other of said stopflanges to said container means flange.

6. A dispenser according to claim 5 wherein said operable meansincluding a pair of upright portions each joined to a separate stopflange, said stop flanges being disposed in different planes when saidoperable means is in its natural state, said operable means beingconstructed of a metal rod such that said rod may be flexed from itsnatural state to displace one of said stop flanges relative to the otherto facilitate detachable, securement of said operable means to saidcontainer means.

7. A dispensing device according to claim 5 wherein said container meanshas a container flange about said opening, said V-shaped portion of saidoperable means being located above said container flange such that aplurality of articles are disposed above the level of said containerflange between the latter and said V-shaped portion of said operablemeans, a retainer means extending generally upwardly from said containerflange at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of saidcolumn, said retaining means limiting the lateral projection of thosearticles disposed between said container flange and said end article.

1. A dispensing device comprising a container means containing a columnof articles to be dispensed, said container means having an openingthrough which said articles are dispensed, biasing means urging saidcolumn in one longitudinal direction towards said opening, operablemeans associated with said opening and engaging one longitudinal end ofsaid column, said operable means including a pair of upright portionseach joined to a separate stop flange, said container means having acontainer flange about said opening, latch means detachably latching oneof said stop flanges to said container flange, said latch meansincluding a latch lug secured to said container flange, said latch lughaving an overhanging portion spaced from said container flange, a lipprojecting downwardly from said overhanging portion to thereby define aninverted, generally U-shaped channel in said latch lug, said one stopflange being accomodated in said channel in latching position, saidoperable means also including a first portion disposed at an acute anglerelative to the longitudinal axis of said column and cooperable withsaid biasing means to partially project said end article laterally toone side of said column to facilitate dispensing of said end article. 2.A dispensing device according to claim 1 wherein said lip is spaced fromsaid container means flange to define an access passage for said onestop flange.
 3. A dispensing device according to claim 1 wherein saidoperable means includes means for biasing said one stop flange in saidlatched position in said channel.
 4. A dispensing device according toclaim 3 wherein said operable means is constructed and arranged toeffect a biasing action of said stop flange against a surface of saidchannel when said one stop flange is in said latched position.
 5. Adispensing device comprising a container means containing a verticalcolumn of articles to be dispensed, said container means having anopening through which said articles are dispensed, biasing means urgingsaid column in one longitudinal direction towards said opening, operablemeans associated with said opening and engaging one longitudinal end ofsaid column, said operable means including a first V-shaped portiondisposed at an acute angle relative to the longitudinal axis of saidcolumn anD cooperable with said biasing means to partially project saidend article laterally to one side of said column to facilitatedispensing of said end article, said operable means including a secondportion disposed generally perpendicular to the longitudinal axis ofsaid column, said second portion having converging legs joined torespective legs of said V-shaped configuration of said first portion,said operable means further including a pair of upright portions eachjoined to a separate stop flange, said opening in said container meansbeing surrounded by a flange, mounting means pivotally mounting one ofsaid stop flanges to said container means flange, said mounting meansincludes a pivotal support lug, fastening means securing said supportlug to said container means flange, pin means pivotally mounting saidone stop flange between a part of said support lug and said containermeans flange, and latch means detachably latching the other of said stopflanges to said container means flange.
 6. A dispenser according toclaim 5 wherein said operable means including a pair of upright portionseach joined to a separate stop flange, said stop flanges being disposedin different planes when said operable means is in its natural state,said operable means being constructed of a metal rod such that said rodmay be flexed from its natural state to displace one of said stopflanges relative to the other to facilitate detachable securement ofsaid operable means to said container means.
 7. A dispensing deviceaccording to claim 5 wherein said container means has a container flangeabout said opening, said V-shaped portion of said operable means beinglocated above said container flange such that a plurality of articlesare disposed above the level of said container flange between the latterand said V-shaped portion of said operable means, a retainer meansextending generally upwardly from said container flange at an acuteangle relative to the longitudinal axis of said column, said retainingmeans limiting the lateral projection of those articles disposed betweensaid container flange and said end article.